Friday, January 21, 2011

ACC is Down This Season

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is far from a mighty league this season.

I follow the ACC because of my interest in North Carolina State. Tuning into the Duke-NC State contest the other night, I was shocked to see the overall records of each conference team.

Yes, the ACC has a number of young players this year. But we aren’t that far removal from the first of the year in which many teams support glossy records despite the competition. Duke is the only team with a glossy record at 17-1.

Three traditional top-tier teams are really struggling. Maryland is just 11-7, while Georgia Tech is barely over .500 at 8-7. Wake Forest is 7-12.

Florida State and Boston College (each 14-5) lead a group of five teams with five overall losses. These two teams should make the NCAA tournament. Boston College’s Reggie Jackson (not the baseball player, ha) is a dynamite talent.

The ACC will need some serious marketing to receive more than four bids this year. The league should definitely sell its rich tradition. But right now, the only real selling point is the potential in the future years.